Rest Day - Porto

Porto is beautifully situated on the 'River of Gold', Rio Douro. In was here in the twelfth century that Portugal took its name as an independent nation, and it played a leading role in the maritime discoveries of the New World in the fifteenth century. The historical centre was declared a World Heritage site in 1996 and in 2001, Porto was chosen as the European city of culture.

It was nice to sleep in a little this morning, in our very comfortable shared apartment and anticipate a day of exploration.

And thus began a day of mooching around Porto. The weather has been warm and sunny, perfect for wandering gently around the city. 

The Porto markets are a photographer's paradise...

Here's one for Sally - very European. 

Here's one for Ken and Christine and for my PhD supervisors (Barbara, Steve and Janet) - Porto University... now do you believe me that this was really a study tour!!

The thin strip in the middle is a separate building which acted as a physical barrier between the Carmelite monks and nuns, who by convention could not live in adjoining buildings. At barely a metre wide, it is one of the narrowest buildings in the world. Not only is it splitting monks and nuns, but it strikes us as a piece of fairly desperate ecclesiastical hair splitting!

The lane, leading down to the rio Douro, is so steep that the stools all have longer legs on one side. 

And here's a cafe name you'd never see in Australia.

A cute row of buildings towards the waterfront.

And another...

The far side of the river is where all the old port houses are situated.

We walked across this top layer of the bridge on our way in last evening. It has room for pedestrians and trams only. The cars cross on a lower level, about forty metres underneath.

The skyline and facades of the buildings here are endlessly fascinating and appealing.

It would be hard not to like this city, and by the number of tourists we've seen here, Porto has an optimistic future. 

With warm wishes,

Neil and Sarah